14 DAY TRIAL // The Pyongyang government has previously denied any involvement in the Sony hack, and continues to do so, saying that FBI’s conclusion after investigating the incident is based on “intentional allegation rather than scientific evidence.”
In the public statement about the origin of the Sony attackers, the FBI provided partial evidence, saying that the investigation revealed lines of code, encryption algorithms, data deletion methods and networks known to have been used by North Korean actors in other operations.
Tools used in the attack could have been used by anyone, DPRK says
In a lengthy statement issued on Sunday through the country’s news agency KCNA, North Korea says that the methods used by hackers everywhere in the world are similar and malicious code is exchanged between them.
This is the reason why the attack on Sony appears to have been carried out by North Korean actors, but the authorities should not have jumped to a conclusion until clear evidence of the threat actor was uncovered, the statement from DPRK (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) says.
Some of the methods and tools used by Guardians of Peace (GoP), the group of hackers claiming responsibility for the Sony incident, were similar to those used in the DarkSeoul operation in March 2013, which targeted banks and media outlets in South Korea.
“If somebody used U.S.-made hacking programs and codes and applied their instruction or encoding method, perhaps, the ‘wise’ FBI, too, could not but admit that it would be hard to decisively assert that the attack was done by the U.S.,” the communication adds.
North Korea makes threat against the US
Starting from this detail, North Korea proceeded to exculpate itself by saying that it never attempted or carried out a cyber-attack against South Korea.
Just like in the previous official declaration, the Pyongyang government accused the US of evil doings and demanded an honest apology to mankind.
Furthermore, it informs that a counter-reaction has already been launched, targeting “all the citadels of the U.S. imperialists who earned the bitterest grudge of all Koreans.”
The most powerful strike will be taken against the White House, the Pentagon, and the whole US mainland.
This declaration comes after President Obama, at a press conference on Friday, said that the US would have a reaction against North Korea at an undisclosed point in time, proportional to the Sony attack and its consequences.
He also said that Sony should not have canceled the release of “The Interview,” the comedy that appears to have caused all this trouble.
At this moment, the investigation of the incident has not yet been completed and new information is likely to emerge as the inquiry advances. However, it must be known that attribution of a sophisticated attack is not something that can be done in haste and is a difficult task.
